**Rules/Guidelines1. Cross-posting with other challenges is allowed (and encouraged!)2. Audiobooks are fine3. Re-reads are acceptable, BUT books must be finished after April 1st to count for the challenge4. Lists don't have to be set in stone; you can change your selections at any time5. Have Fun!!6. You do NOT need a blog to participate.

**Bonus!! (Optional)In the past two challenges we compiled a list of books that we think might be considered classics one day. I've wiped out that old list so we can start fresh, but to get an idea of what others suggested in the past, see HERE and HERE. To start off the list, I'm going to suggest Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver.

Leave your suggestion (one please) in the comments below. If you want to participate in the bonus round, choose a book from the list and read that in addition to the classics you have picked (e.g., if you are doing the classics snack, you will read five books total and so on).

I realize this means you may have to wait to make your list or leave the bonus book as "tentative" if you choose to participate in the bonus round, but I'm hoping this is a modern twist on the old classics challenge.

What is a Classic?Am I going to define what a classic is? Nope! There are lots of definitions offered on the Internet, but we all have different opinions so don't stress too much. In the comments below, I'd love if you would give a (one please) recommendation for a classic you would suggest to beginners or apprehensive readers--maybe something lighter or something engaging. I'll compile a list. I'm going to suggest Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton.

Trish, you write a lot! Just tell me what I need to do!1. Sign up below using Mr. Linky. Preferably link to your list for the challenge, but I'm not going to make you. :P If you don't have a blog, just enter your name.2. Give a (one) suggestion for a "future" classic in the comments below3. Recommended a (one) classic for "beginners" in the comments below4. Let me know if you have any questions5. Get reading those dang classics!!

I think a future classic will be The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. My recommendation for beginners is The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (even though it is tec. a children's book.)

I'm back again, Trish, and thank you for hosting:)Once again I'm going for all Australian classics, and for a Classic Snack I have chosen *The Man Who Loved Children by Christina Stead (1940)*To the Islands by Randolph Stow (1958)*Merry Go Round in the Sea by Randolph Stow (1965)*Trap by Peter Mathers (1966)Lisa Hill, ANZ LitLovers

I love reading classics, so since I'm already going to be reading some this year, I'll definitely join in.My choice for a beginner's classic has already been mentioned by many others (Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird), so instead I will offer up Alan Paton's Cry, The Beloved Country.For a future classic, I'll recommend Pramoedya Ananta Toer's This Earth of Mankind.As for my reading list -- I'll go with Zusak's The Book Thief; Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath; Sinclair's The Jungle; Munro's Dance of the Happy Shades; Huxley's Brave New World; and Bronte's Jane Eyre. For the bonus round, I'll go with Coetzee's Disgrace. Now I just have to remember to start these books AFTER 1 April!

Count me in for the "entree"-level challenge! A classic I'd recommend for beginners is Brave New World by Aldous Huxley -- it's easy to read and examines a lot of interesting philosophical questions. A future classic, in my opinion, is The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde; it's too clever not to become one!

*Everyone! - Thank you thank you for your great suggestions. I've added them to the list--if I missed any, please let me know. I'm so glad you've all joined and I look forward to seeing what you're reading!

Thanks again for hosting the challenge. I haven't got my list ready yet but I'm starting with the Brothers Karamazov. For a modern classic, there's so many good suggestions but how about Raise the Red Lantern by Sue Tong.

I will be representing our blog (ouryearinbooks.blogspot.com), though I am willing to bet, my husband will want to join in too. I am going to go for the entree with a bonus. Looking forward to this. I agree with most of the previous suggestions for starters and futures. Mine would be: starter: Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf, or Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier (sp.?)future: The Road

As for a beginner's classic I suggest The Dispossessed by Ursula LeGuin and Stranger in a Starnge Land by Robert Heinlein. Both essential reading in the science fiction genre and potentially life-changing. The Dispossessed blew my mind when I first read it at 19.

This sounds like fun! I would suggest The Woman in White to a beginning classic reader. It is long, but very good! I also think that The Jungle and The Odessy should be on your classic list.

For a future classic to add I would say "3 cups of Tea." It is inspiring and extremely relevant to our times. I think this book will be a culture-shaper for sure. Everyone should read it and the sequel "Stones into Schools"!

Joining very late, but I had so much fun last year that I can't resist. My pick for a future classic is Redwall, by Brian Jacques. It's had to find one that hasn't been recommended already, but Anne Frank's Diary of a Young Girl is certainly readable and worthwhile.